Parents of lacrosse players mad at Duke

DURHAM, N.C., Jan. 21 (UPI) -- Parents of Duke lacrosse players say officials at the North Carolina school undercut members of the team after three players were accused of rape.

The parents are angry about the school forfeiting games and making public statements about the case, the Baltimore Sun reports.

"Let's face it, a college community is a diverse environment, and there was sensitivity to the notion of white, privileged athletes beating up on a black woman," said Sally Fogarty of Chevy Chase, Md., whose son Gibbs was on the team and not one of the accused. "But in the consideration of an absolutely false notion, three Duke students and their families got lost."

The prosecution case against the three lacrosse players has been unraveling, with the exotic dancer who said she was assaulted in a bathroom during a team party seeming like an increasingly unreliable witness. District Attorney Mike Nifong recently dropped the most serious charges against the three suspects and asked the North Carolina attorney general to take over the case.